Rand Paul in Pat-Down Standoff With TSA in Nashville
Sen. Rand Paul told his communications director this morning he was being detained by TSA in Nashville.
@moirabagley, the Twitter account associated with Paul staffer Moira Bagley tweeted around 10 a.m., ET, ‘Just got a call from @senrandpaul. He’s currently being detained by TSA in Nashville.’
A spokesman for TSA said the agency was looking into the matter but could not immediately comment.
Paul apparently set off an airport security full-body scanner, ‘on a glitch,’ a spokesman in Paul’s office told ABC News.
The Paul staffer said TSA agents would not let Paul walk back through the body scanner and were demanding, according to the staffer, a full body pat-down.
The Paul spokesman said his office had called TSA administrator John Pistole about the incident this morning.
The Senate is back in session today at 2 p.m., with votes scheduled at 4:30 p.m.
The issue of pat-downs has been an important one to Paul, the son of libertarian-leaning Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul. Sen. Paul brought this issue up at a hearing earlier this year.